4 comments about Girls Only.

1. and what I thought would be a fun a collection of nonfiction essays--not much substance to the essays..fell short of my expectations.



2. I just finished this book, three weeks after losing my lovely mother to old age. The interplay of adult and child-like qualities that we all balance precariously with our birth family has never been more accurately (nor more humorously) depicted as in this book. I wept for my loss, but rejoiced in the remaining relationships I have with my sisters, however complicated they are by birth order, age differences, and our individual devotion to our dear mother. I plan to track down a copy of this book for each of my sisters, to remind us to move on in our relationships, now that we have journeyed beyond the last page of Ms. Witchel's insightful story. I recommend this book to sisters and daughters everywhere, particularly those who can still share it with their mothers. May her memory be eternal.



3. Witchel has captured the fun between two sisters and a mother with exact sharpness. This story, although a light read, vocalizes feelings I thought I only felt about my mother and sister. Judging by the amount of reviews this isn't a popular read, what a shame. This would be a great gift for any mother, daughter or sister. I think I'll go make a tuna fish sandwich and call my mom.



4. American feminism has encouraged women to explore their own lives and listen to their own voices. You need not be a woman, a New Yorker, or a Jew to learn from this extraordinarily well-crafted memoir. Self-deprecating humor is laced throughout this incredibly initmate examination of a journalist's life as daughter and sister. Alex Witchel is as unsparing of her own shortcomings as she is loving and forgiving of both her mother's srtrengths and foibles. An independent, interdependent, and dependent woman, Alex encourages us to examine our own lives though the context of her own. I am completely convinced that "Girls Only" will become a staple of book clubs and soon will become a referent for both male and female feminists.

3 comments about My Times: A Memoir of Dissent.

1. "Halleluya!  On this 26th day of May, 2004, the New York Times confessed to having helped promote the lies that got us into war with Iraq."
   
   "We should fire Rumsfeld, and Cheney, and Bush, and the whole pack of warmakers today -- not tomorrow or next month -- today. "
   
   "Politicians hire brains.  Telling them what to say and how to say it is a big business and getting bigger all the time."
   
   "People who are under the illusion that the Times is a liberal paper should read its editorial today. It says moving good jobs abroad is 'freeing up American capital, labor and other resources for more efficient, high-value uses.' "
   
   ----John Hess, from wbai.org
   
   I consider John Hess one of the most important voices in contemporary America. His words and what we are able to learn from them, should motivate us to open our eyes to the corruption and hypocrisy in our nation. The realization that more people recognize the name of a hate monger like Rush Limbaugh than the name of John Hess, illustrates the manufactured ignorance that those in power would prefer. Only through education will we effectively address what is wrong in the U.S. I find John Hess to be an educator who is informed, passionate and motivating!



2. I bought Mr. Hess' book out of curiosity. I knew Mr. Hess from the days when he was a commentator on a local TV station before Rupert Murdoch bought the station and destroyed it. I expected to try the book and give up after 50 or so pages. Well, I couldn't put it down! Mr. Hess is a very good writer who never bores you.

   I lived through the years that he writes about. He explains for me many of the things that I felt were not right about those years as well as the lack of reporting by The New York Times. I have to ask myself where my head was during that period.

   I highly recommend this book. It gave me an eye-opening view of The New York Times, politicians, and the sad level of reporting in the United States. It should be required reading by reporters and would-be reporters.




3. With a diamond-hard honesty rare, if not unique, among today's journalists, John L. Hess has written a memoir that deflates the gas-filled balloon that is the New York Times. A reporter and editor for the Times for 24 years, Hess shows how from the moment Adolph Ochs purchased the newspaper in 1896 it has cozied up to corrupt politicans and wealthy businessmen. In a blurb on the jacket, Kurt Vonnegut terms the newspaper a "mighty crowd-control engine," and indeed Hess provides many examples of the Times leading the way in suppressing news and information that might educate the public as to how they are being bilked. No one could read this book and still think that the Times is a liberal, much less an honest, newspaper.

3 comments about Live from Baghdad: Making Journalism History Behind the Lines.

1. This book is a good and even thrilling description of the first gulf war and how CNN reporters reported from Baghdad. That being said, this writer couldn't be more self-adoring and congratulatory, or obnoxious. At the end of the book, he compares Bush's intelligence to that of his pet cat. Whether you are a Bush-lover or hater, that is a disgraceful, horrible thing to say about the president of our nation and it reflects Wiener's generally high portrayal of himself and low portrayal of others.



2. I found this book and thought it would be interesting to see what happened to the press during the war. Unfortunately for me all this author talked about was bureaucratic problems and drinking and smoking. I kept reading thinking that once the war started the book would pick up and at page 275 the war started but the book remained dull. I am assuming that the author is a much better TV producer then author or there is no way he would have a job with CNN.

   The book was dull, there is no way around it. The author kept focusing on his drinking and the issues with this ministry and that ministry - not the most exciting. I wanted more detail on what it was like in Baghdad leading up to and during the war - - all the author gave us was what it was like for him in his hotel. Overall I would skip the book and watch the movie.




3. Live From Baghdad is one of those books that you just cannot put down. Giving the details of the struggle to get the story out before and during the Gulf War, this book is a tremendous personal account of what it takes to succeed in impossible circumstances. Robert Wiener and his crew made extreme personal sacrifices, sometimes in life-threatening circumstances, to get the story out and beat the competition. A great textbook example on how to negotiate what you need through respect and patience, being rewarded with sucess and a place in history. Great anecdotes about life behind the scenes make this a truly enjoyable read.

No comments about The death of a pioneer. (the suicide of Jack Swift, an advocate of public journalism): An article from: American Journalism Review.

No comments about A Red in the House: The Unauthorized Memoir of S.E. Fleischman.

No comments about The Writing Game: A Biography of Will Irwin.

1 comments about The Story of Ernie Pyle..

1. This biography of World War II's most famous American war correspondant is drawn primarily from letters written to and from Pyle's wife and close friends. Miller quotes these letters throughout the book, and this brings a sense of authenticity to what the author tries to present. The fact that Miller was Pyle's boss and close friend for most of Ernie's adult life also creates a sense of having the inside story to Ernie's life.

   Of course as a personal friend Miller somewhat glosses over a few of Ernie's shortcomings, notably his ability to repeatedly leave his tortured wife alone for long stretches of time. But the book is a good introduction to Ernie Pyle and what he meant to the war effort. I read this book prior to reading any of the compilation books of his daily columns, and I'm glad I did because I had some insight into Pyle's perspective on the war and the people who fought in it. This for me made reading his columns even more emotionally moving.

   I recommend this book for a look behind the man who chronicled the experience of the American fighting man in World War II so very well.

No comments about Edgar Snow: A Biography.

1 comments about Sylvia Pankhurst: Counsel For Ethiopia.

1. In this beautifully written book, the author, the current leading Ethiopianst and the son of Mrs. Pankhurst, describes and reviews the work of his mother. The book introduces a new generation of Ethiopians and those interested in Ethiopian history to Mrs. Pankhurst's advocacy on behalf of Ethiopia during and after the Italian occupation of Ethiopia. This is definately a must read book!!!

2 comments about Frank Springer And New Mexico: From the Colfax County War to the Emergence of Modern Santa Fe.

1. Great book on a little-known figure in New Mexico. Or, should I say, a forgotten figure. AT the time he was very well known, but we tend to forget our history.



2. Though there have been many books written about the way the region (Northeastern New Mexico) was developed, this book is unique in that it makes the history enjoyable and easy to read. By making the book about a person -- Frank Springer -- the land itself is brought to life.
   
   There are stories of murders, feuds, and gentlemen. There are details of politics, romance, and business. This book has something for everyone.
   
   Exhaustive notes are found in the back of the book, which allows the reading of the book to be smooth and flowing: There are 15 pages of footnotes, plus 5 pages referencing writings by Frank Springer, and also 11 pages of bibliography. After all of that, a 9 page index is also provided.
   
   Balancing the contents of this book with the other information I have read about the area, it appears to be historically accurate and complete. I recommend this book to anyone with a curiousity of not just "what" happened back then in the old west, but "why and how." It's a book about history, but a history made easy to read.